Krishna

The Journal of Environment &
Development
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Krishna Basin Development: Interventions to Limit Downstream

Environmental Degradation
Jean-Philippe Venot, Bharat R. Sharma and K.V.G.K. Rao
The Journal of Environment Development 2008; 17; 269
DOI: 10.1177/1070496508320532
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Krishna Basin Development 10.1177/1070496508320532
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Interventions to Limit Downstream hosted at
http://online.sagepub.com
Environmental Degradation
Jean-Philippe Venot
International Water Management Institute, Hyderabad
Bharat R. Sharma
International Water Management Institute, New Delhi
K. V. G. K. Rao
Indwa Technologies Pvt. Ltd, Hyderabad
Since India gained Independence, the Krishna basin has seen an increasing mobilization
of its water resources. Warnings of basin closure (minimal flow to the ocean) emerge dur-
ing dry periods. Basin water development and local rural dynamics have led to a degra-
dation of downstream ecosystems manifesting itself by salinizing soil and groundwater,
increasing pollution, making mangroves disappear, and desiccating wetlands. Reversing
this evolution requires the formal recognition of the environment as a water user in its
own right and the implementation of an environmental water provision. This provision
should be based on a two-tier allocation system with assured discharges in the irrigation
canals of the delta and to the ocean. This will lead to further commitment of water
resources, but this is needed to reconcile the social, economic, and environmental objec-
tives of sustainable development. Other measures facilitating integrated natural resources
management from the local to the basin level are needed too.
Keywords: water resources development; rural development; integrated natural

resources management; water allocation; environmental preservation; India
Introduction
Water use for urban, industrial, and agricultural growth is approaching and in some
cases even exceeding the availability of renewable water. Agroecosystem dynamics and
excessive infrastructural development result in overcommitment of water. This particu-
lar approach to water resources management and development has led to significant
degradation of various ecosystems (Pearce, Atkinson, & Mourato, 2006; Falkenmark,
Authors’ Note: Please address correspondence to Jean-Philippe Venot, IWMI c/o ICRISAT, Patancheru
502 324, Andhra Pradesh, India; e-mail: j.venot@cgiar.org.
269
270 The Journal of Environment & Development
Finlayson, Chiuta, & Gordon, 2007), and many river basins in the world are facing an
environmental water scarcity (Smakhtin, Revenga, & Doll, 2004). However, to date,
most developing countries have paid little attention to this overcommitment and to its
environmental consequences. Management tools to reverse or mitigate this evolution
are rare.
The United States of America, South Africa, and Australia are countries where envi-
ronmental water requirements have been mainstreamed in water resources policies and
legislation. This mainstreaming led to the recognition of formal water allocation pro-
cedures as the most adapted tools to reconcile the social, environmental, and economic
objectives of sustainable development and integrated water resources management.
There is increasing evidence of the adverse impacts of water and land degradation on
people’s livelihoods (Emerton & Bos, 2005; Falkenmark et al., 2007; Millennium
Ecosystem Assessment [MEA], 2005). Therefore, balancing environmental require-
ments and human consumptive uses is now widely regarded as a top priority, and the
notion of environmental flows is establishing itself firmly. It is an attempt to find a
compromise between productive uses and some protection threshold. But achieving
this balance represents a considerable challenge in many of the world’s river basins,
especially in arid and semiarid areas of the developing world, as more vocal popula-
tions and associated water demands increase to sustain a broader economic develop-
ment (National Commission for Integrated Water Resource Development Plan, 1999;
United Nations Administrative Coordination Council/Inter-Secretariat Group on Water
Resources, 1992; World Water Assessment Program, 2003).
However, most developing countries do not have well-defined procedures for
effective water allocation, and water policies generally only list “allocation priori-
ties.” Although economically and socially or politically powerful users have com-
paratively well-developed methods for quantifying and justifying their water needs,
the ecosystems continue to be the silent and weak water user. As such, environmen-
tal water requirements have not yet received the required attention in water policies
and in the general discourse on water resource governance: They are generally
ignored, as the water flowing to the sea is considered to be “lost or wasted” (see
Government of Andhra Pradesh [GoAP], 2001a, and Smakhtin, Gamage, & Bharati,
2007, on the Indian case). The Indian National Water Policy of 2002 in particular
provides guidelines for prioritizing water allocation to different competing sectors
without mentioning how these priorities are to be translated on the ground. It pro-
vides precedence to drinking water over irrigation and hydropower. Industrial and
navigation needs are given the last priority. Environmental concerns are mentioned
and “ecology” is given fourth priority, but nothing is said on how this can be
achieved (Ministry of Water Resources [MoWR], 2002).
This article is a case study on the Krishna River basin in South India. The basin has
witnessed intense water development since India gained Independence, with little
regard to the limits of available resources (Venot, Turral, Samad, & Molle, 2007); agroe-
cosystems have dramatically evolved, resulting in downstream environmental degrada-
tion. The observed decline in the discharge to the ocean sends a strong signal: There is
Venot et al. / Krishna Basin Development 271
only little scope for further water supply development, and further taming the Krishna
waters will exacerbate environmental degradation. Based on secondary data collection,
field interviews with key informants and farmers, and a comprehensive review of the lit-
erature, this article investigates the linkages between rural development dynamics and
the downstream environment in the Krishna basin to (a) understand when and how rural
development and environmental preservation come or do not come into conflict, (b)
investigate whether committed allocations for environmental flows could allow meeting
the environmental and social objectives of sustainable development, and (c) identify
other potential areas of intervention.
The first part of this article presents the main features of the lower Krishna basin.
The second section presents a methodology for water allocation in the framework of
environmental flows in a data-scarce context and applies this methodology to the
Krishna basin. The third section provides a historical assessment of water availabil-
ity and uses (water accounting) in the Krishna basin and depicts in further detail the
rural dynamics and the institutional context of the lower Krishna basin as some of
the main driving forces of downstream environmental degradation. The fourth sec-
tion describes the linkages between agriculture, aquaculture, and the environment in
the lower Krishna basin. A fifth section identifies possible interventions to mitigate
current environmental degradation. Finally, a short paragraph concludes.
Human and Physical Setting of the Lower Krishna Basin
The Krishna River originates in the Western Ghats of Maharashtra, drains the dry
areas of the Deccan Plateau, and forms a delta before discharging into the Bay of
Bengal. The Krishna basin drains an area of 258,948 km2 and covers parts of three
South Indian states: Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra. Its climate is pre-
dominantly semiarid (with an average annual rainfall of 840 mm and potential evap-
otranspiration exceeding rainfall in all but 3 months during the peak of the monsoon;
Biggs et al., 2007). Seasonal and interannual rainfall variability is one of the main
characteristic of the climate of the Krishna basin (Biggs et al., 2007): River flows are
highly variable and this makes forecasting and management a challenge. This article
focuses on the impacts that rural development dynamics witnessed in the Krishna
basin during the last 50 years have had on the lower Krishna basin, located in Andhra
Pradesh (Figure 1), which bears the brunt of any intervention further upstream. The
lower Krishna basin, with an average annual rainfall of 650 to 1,150 mm, represent-
ing three main agroecosystems has an area of 8,746 km2 (Figure 1).
• The Krishna delta, where a large irrigation project irrigates 540,000 ha thanks to
gravity canals drawing water from a barrage on the Krishna River at Vijayawada.
The delta accommodates about 4 million inhabitants depending mainly on agricul-
ture and aquaculture.
Figure 1
The Lower Krishna Basin in South India
• The Kolleru Lake, which is a freshwater inland lake designated as a wetland of

international importance under the Ramsar convention. It is located between the
Krishna and Godavari River deltas. Limits shown in Figure 1 are indicative: They
do not correspond to the boundaries of the Ramsar site itself but correspond to a
larger low-lying region designated as the Kolleru Lake region in this article.
Aquaculture ponds are widespread in this region, where half a million people live.
• The coastal zone, where mangroves and natural vegetation have been progressively
cut and replaced by aquaculture ponds.
Water Allocation in the Framework of Environmental Flows
Defining Environmental Water Provision in a Data-Scarce Context

The lack of an understanding and of a commitment to the notion of environmen-
tal flows in the developing world arises from two main questions: (a) how to define
environmental water needs and (b) how to quantify them? Because many river basins
of the world, notably in arid and semiarid areas, are closing (Murray-Darling,
Colorado, Indus, and Jordan River basins; a generally accepted definition of a closed
river basin is one where all available water is committed [Molden, 1997], resulting
in little or no discharge to the ocean during years with average precipitation) the
question of environmental flows is of crucial importance. Preserving ecosystems
through formal mechanisms of water allocation, which recognize the environment as
a water user in its own right, is needed; however, defining acceptable, if not optimal,
environmental flows is a critical issue. Estimates of environmental flows will deter-
mine to what extent a river basin is closed and how new water resources can be
developed. In closed or closing river basins, water resources cannot be further
extended without impinging on actual uses: Understanding the environmental
dynamics at stake and the interconnectedness between the environment and rural
development is crucial in order to match environmental concerns with the social and
economic objectives of sustainable development.
Environmental water requirements of a river basin can be defined, as a first
approximation, as an ecologically acceptable flow regime. It is designed to maintain
or upgrade a river in a desired, agreed, or predetermined status referred to as an envi-
ronmental management class ranging from the natural (pristine) environment to a
critically modified ecosystem. A detailed discussion of these notions can be found in
Smakhtin and Anputhas (2006) and Tharme (2003).
Defining an annual volume of water to be set aside for the environment (bulk allo-
cation), according to arbitrarily predefined preservation objectives, might be a futile
exercise: It does not have any sound ecological meaning. Yet such a desktop assess-
ment method constitutes the first step toward the recognition of the environment as
a water user in its own right (Smakhtin et al., 2004). It is a basinwide reconnaissance
assessment that has several advantages: It is rapid, generic, and non–resource inten-
sive (Tharme, 2003). As a result, this low-resolution estimate of environmental flows
based on a single arbitrary hydrological index (the discharge to the ocean) is con-
sidered to be most appropriate at the planning level of water resources development
and could be used as a preliminary flow target. This is particularly adapted to devel-
oping countries where the water governance structure is weak and hydrological and
ecological data scarce.
Assessing Environmental Water Requirements in the Krishna Basin
Allocating water to meet different environmental objectives. Based on the work

by Smakhtin and Anputhas (2006), Table 1 presents what would be the possible envi-
ronmental annual water requirements of the Krishna basin, measured at the head of
the Krishna delta in Vijayawada (Figure 1), according to different objectives of
downstream ecosystem preservation.
In arid and semiarid regions affected by the monsoon, the seasonality and inter-
annual variability of water flows are crucial for the functioning of water-dependent
Table 1
Annual Environmental Water Requirements (EWR) for the Krishna Basin
(Flow Measured at Vijayawada for Different “Protection Thresholds”)
Environmental Natural Slightly Moderately Largely Seriously Critically
Status Ecosystem Modified Modified Modified Modified Modified
EWR (% historical 62.5 35.7 18.3 8.4 3.5 1.5

MAR)a
EWR (km3/year) 48.5 27.7 14.2 6.5 2.7 1.2
Source: Adapted from Smakhtin and Anputhas (2006).

a. The historical mean annual runoff (MAR) has been evaluated at 77.6 km3/year (Central Water Commission,
2002).
ecosystems. It is generally recognized that environmental flows should be defined

against this backdrop of natural variability of flow regime (Dyson, Bergkamp, &
Scanlon, 2003). Based on the tenets of the natural flow paradigm (Poff et al., 1997),
Figure 2 shows recommended monthly flow regimes to preserve the Krishna basin
in a “moderately to largely modified” environmental status. These monthly flow
regimes are obtained by scaling down the natural flow regime (approximated to the
regime observed between 1901 and 1947 when only little impoundment and land use
changes had affected the functioning of the Krishna basin drainage network) by
81.7% (for a moderately modified system) and 91.6% (for a largely modified status)
to match the thresholds presented in Table 1. These two environmental statuses have
been chosen as they are the two lowest acceptable environmental statuses as per the
Department of Water Affairs and Forestry (1999) guidelines in South Africa.
Water availability and environmental status of the Krishna basin. Figure 2 pro-
vides the first striking indication of river-basin closure and environmental degrada-
tion: a decreasing discharge to the ocean and an altered flow regime. Before 1960,
river discharge into the ocean averaged 57 billion cubic meters a year (km3/year) and
the threshold of 48.5 km3/year, defining a natural ecosystem (Table 1), was reached
with 76% reliability. Since 1965, the river discharge has steadily decreased at an
average of 0.8 km3/year, falling to 10.8 km3 in 2000 (which is less than 19% of its
pre-1960 value) whereas it was almost nil in 2004 (0.4 km3). Only a little usable out-
flow, during the monsoonal period (July to October), reaches the ocean.
In standard condition, the average discharge to the ocean observed between 1988
and 2000 (between the last two major droughts) was 21.2 km3/year, but the thresh-
old of 14.2 km3/year defining a moderately modified ecosystem was only reached
with 60% reliability. Similarly, monthly flow regimes (right panel of Figure 2) show
that the Krishna basin is a moderately to largely modified ecosystem and that tam-
ing the Krishna waters leads to a 2-month delay in the peak outflows. This change
Figure 2
Evolution of the Krishna Discharge to the Ocean, Measured at the Head
of the Delta, and Monthly Flow Regimes for Different
Objectives of Environmental Preservation
Sources: Left panel, Biggs et al. (2007); right panel, Andhra Pradesh State Water Data Centre figures.
was also observed and analyzed by Smakhtin and Anputhas (2006), who suggest it
may have affected the lower Krishna basin biosystems: Altered flow regimes are
indeed one of the main threats to environmental sustainability (Bunn & Arthington,
2002).
The Drivers of Environmental Degradation

in the Lower Krishna Basin
Shifting Landscape and Waterscape in the Krishna Basin

History of water development in the Krishna basin. The Krishna basin has seen an
increasing development of its water resources and a dramatic expansion of irrigation
since the 1850s. This phenomenon hastened after India gained Independence in 1947,
and the total storage capacity (in large reservoirs) has multiplied eightfold since the
1950s to reach about 54.5 km3 in 2002 (Figure 2; Biggs et al., 2007). Although their
extent is not well quantified, small-scale irrigation projects commit significant volumes
of water as well. Existing infrastructure regulates more than the 75% dependable annual
flow. This may not generate significant cuts in water supply in most years, but it may
lead to significant shortage in the lower reaches of the basin during dry years as
upstream water supplies are not adjusted to reflect deficits in water availability. Along
Figure 3
Water Flows and Uses in the Krishna Basin
with this infrastructural development, surface water–irrigated areas have more than dou-
bled since the 1950s: They covered 2.9 million hectares (Mha) in 1996-2002. At the
same time, groundwater-irrigated areas extended owing to the boom of groundwater
abstraction thanks to private pumps, shallow tube wells, and subsidized energy.
Groundwater-irrigated areas have more than doubled during the last 50 years: They
supplied about 1.9 Mha in 1996-2002. The total irrigated area in the Krishna basin cov-
ered 4.8 Mha in 1996-2002.
Basinwide water accounting: A methodology for quantification. The water

accounting presented graphically in Figure 3 draws on the categories of water bal-
ance proposed by Molden (1997). It estimates water depletion, defined as the use or
removal of water from a river basin that renders it unavailable for further use, over
different periods of 10 years: This article focuses on long-term trends revealed by
average balances.
The basin water balance respects the principle of conservation of mass, where total
input equals total outflows and change in storage. This is represented by equation (1):
RF + Tin = Dpl + P + Tout + Qout + ΔS (1)
where
RF is the mean annual rainfall measured from the data set of the Climatic Research
Unit, University of East Anglia (2007).
Tin are water transfers entering the Krishna basin (noted imports in Figure 3). The
amount of water transferred from other river basins is estimated from government
statistics and data from water supply projects. In what follows, RF and Tin are pooled
together and designated as the net inflow in the Krishna basin.
Dpl is the depletion from any kind of land cover, and is estimated, as a first approximation,
as the evapotranspiration (ET) of a given land cover. Evapotranspiration in irrigated
fields and evaporation from reservoirs are derived from climate data and a
Penman–Monteith equation (Allen, Pereira, Raes, & Smith, 1998); evapotranspiration
by rain-fed agriculture and rain-fed vegetation is estimated after Biggs (in press) and
Bouwer, Biggs, and Aerts (2007). Land cover is estimated on the basis of land-use sta-
tistics at the district level (GoAP, 2006; Government of Karnataka [GoKT], 2006;
Government of Maharashtra [GoMH], 2005; and available online, with a subscription,
at www.indiaagristat.com).
P denotes human and livestock consumptive uses or processes. Domestic and industrial
uses are computed according to van Rooijen et al. (2008), assuming a water use effi-
ciency of 70% in each sector. Livestock processes are computed according to Peden,
Tadesse, and Misra (2007) and livestock statistics according to GoAP (2005), GoKT
(2006), GoMH (2005), and www.indiaagristat.com.
Tout are water transfers out of the Krishna basin (noted exports in Figure 3). The amount
of water transferred to other river basins is estimated from government statistics and
data from water supply projects.
Qout is the discharge to the ocean, measured at the head of the delta by the Irrigation
Department of Andhra Pradesh. Pre-1980 values are from Biggs et al. (2007),
whereas post-1980 values have been collected by the authors from the irrigation
department offices of Vijayawada and Hyderabad.
ΔS is the net change in water storage, including both groundwater and surface water
storage and is calculated as the closing term of the water balance, for example, the
difference between net inflows and outflows (evaporation from vegetation + human
consumptive uses + exports + discharge to the ocean).
Figure 4 quantifies the main changes of the Krishna basin agroecosystems. It illus-
trates that the main trend is a strong increase of irrigation depletion that has more than
doubled from 17.1 km3/year during 1955-1965 to 44.3 km3/year during 1990-2000. This
implied a 19% rise in the total depletion during the period 1955-2000. The total deple-
tion amounted to 181 km3 during 1990-2000, that is, 88% of the net inflow to the Krishna
basin. Consequently, the discharge to the ocean dramatically decreased and amounted
only to 10% of the net inflow during 1990-2000 (2% of the net inflow was exported to
other basins). This led to dramatic environmental changes in the lower Krishna basin (see
next section). According to Smakhtin and Anputhas (2006), preserving the moderately to
largely modified ecosystem of the Krishna basin would require an environmental flow
allocation of about 6.5 to 14.2 km3/year (Table 1). This will point to a rate of water
resources commitment of 94% to 98%, showing that resources will be fully committed
under average conditions. Yet this is needed to stop the increasing degradation of the
environment that distresses livelihoods in the lower Krishna basin.
Rural Dynamics in the Lower Krishna Basin

The lower Krishna basin has a long history of irrigation: The first large-scale pro-
ject was implemented in the early 1850s (Wallach, 1984). During 1954-1957, it was
Figure 4
Historical Water Account of the Krishna Basin (1955-2000,
Nominal and Relative Value)
modernized and the actual project irrigates about 540,000 ha and is the “rice bowl”
of Andhra Pradesh. Agricultural and rural dynamics of the lower Krishna basin are
closely linked to the emergence of a large class of prosperous peasants or owner-
cultivators who can be best termed “farmer-capitalists” (Upadhya, 1988). These
agriculturalists largely benefited from the agricultural productivity boom of the
Green Revolution (1965-1985) and from a strong state-driven institutional support
to agricultural development until the mid-1980s (Landy, in press). They are both
involved in agricultural production and surplus commercialization and, on the basis
of their agricultural successes, they have progressively invested in other avenues
(agro-industries, industries, manufacturing activities, real estates) and in education
of their children. They dominate the social landscape of the lower Krishna basin but
also have a broader political influence in Andhra Pradesh.
In the mid-1980s, and furthermore with the liberalization of the Indian economy in
the early 1990s, the strong state-driven investments in rural development weakened:
This pushed rural India into what is called an “agrarian distress” (Suri, 2006). Despite
being less affected by this agrarian distress than rain-fed farmers in semiarid areas, the
farmer-capitalists of the lower Krishna basin looked for other economic opportunities.
Aquaculture, strongly supported by the Government of Andhra Pradesh, was one of

them and its development during the 1990s had significant impacts on the lower
Krishna basin agroecosystems. Aquaculture developed mainly on unappropriated gov-
ernment lands (commons) for which land entitlements were delivered by panchayats
(the local administrations). It came together with land speculation. Prospects of high
revenues attracted poor farmers and fishermen who, being under both economic and
political pressure, sold or leased out their land to rich local entrepreneurs and outsider
investors. Although the land was officially entitled to them, small local farmers and fish-
ermen became de facto laborers, hired on a daily or monthly basis by rich entrepreneurs
(Rama Rao, Jairath, & Umesh, 2006). The emergence of social movements, backed up
by the mobilization of the local elites who wanted to limit the in-migration of outsider
investors who could have cornered the sector, pushed the government to legislate on
shrimp farming in 1996 (Supreme Court of India, 1996). The legislation aims at con-
trolling aquaculture development to limit environmental degradation but implementa-
tion remains a difficult task as it goes against the economic objectives of the
Government of Andhra Pradesh to revive aquaculture (GoAP, 2001b). As generally doc-
umented in other cases (National Research Council, 2002), the change in the mode of
access to land (from open access to governmental land, generally grazed to the benefit
of the poorest, to a private access guaranteed by land entitlements for agriculture or
aquaculture) is a main driver of the degradation of natural resources in the lower
Krishna basin.
Institutional Context of the Lower Krishna Basin

In her study of the shrimp farming sector in India, Brugere (2006) clearly showed
that conflicts over coastal resources and subsequent environmental degradation were
predominantly the outcome of institutional failures, that is, the inability of institutions
in place to deal with natural resources management issues. Mapping the Andhra
Pradesh institutions involved in the use, control, and preservation of natural resources
in regard to the lower Krishna basin is thus central to the understanding of the drivers
of environmental degradation. It reveals a fragmented institutional framework familiar
to water and natural resources managers in developing countries (GoAP, 2001b) with
(a) several federal institutions (Ministry of Water Resources, of Environment and
Forests, of Agriculture, and of Rural Development, the Marine Products Export
Development Authority, etc.); (b) several state agencies (the Fisheries; Agriculture;
Irrigation; Environment, Forests, Science and Technology Departments of the State of
Andhra Pradesh; the Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board; the Shore Area
Development Authority; the Aquaculture Authority, etc.); (c) several judiciary bodies
(Supreme Court of India, High Court of Andhra Pradesh, Krishna Water Disputes
Tribunal); (d) local institutions (panchayats, farmers, and fishermen associations); and
(e) a multitude of regulations and legislations—the Wildlife Protection Act (1972), the
Water Prevention and Control of Pollution Act (1974), the Environment Protection Act
(1986), the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification (1991), the Indian Fisheries Act
(1997), the Coastal Aquaculture Authority Act (2005), etc.—for the most important one.
The lower Krishna basin is a vivid example of how local rural dynamics and iden-
tification of new economic opportunities (e.g., aquaculture) have led to the recon-
figuration of the institutional context in which resource extraction takes place. The
role and importance of local institutions have been diluted as the legal and institu-
tional framework of natural resources management broadened in line with the
increasing recognition of the importance of environmental preservation for sustain-
able development. This institutional formalization aimed at better preserving ecosys-
tems but often led to further degradation of the environment. This does not mean that
formalization is not needed: A strong institutional support is indeed essential to
achieve governance systems supporting integrated resources management to ensure
an environmentally sustainable development (Falkenmark et al., 2007; Gowing,
Tuong, & Hoanh, 2006), but this reminds us of the need for further integration and
coordination among different institutions that are generally pursuing overlapping but
conflicting objectives in the long run. What is required is making the existing legal
provisions context specific and their implementation effective. This could notably be
done by making these regulations more easily available, building up enforcement
mechanisms, training officials in the use and implementation of laws, improving the
still low awareness of these policies among stakeholders, etc. (GoAP, 2001b).
Finally, decision makers need to be convinced that protecting the environment can
yield both environmental and social benefits (Bunn & Arthington, 2002).
Rural Development and Environment: Conflicting

and Complementary Uses of Water
Wetlands, deltas, estuaries, and more generally coastal ecosystems are dramati-
cally affected by any changes in water use and availability (Ramsar Convention
Secretariat, 2006). The degradation of estuarine resources, owing to a variety of
human activities within and outside the estuaries, has become a major environmen-
tal concern in India (Bhatta & Bhat, 1998). The Krishna basin is no exception:
Warnings have emerged of environmental degradation in the lower basin because of
long-term evolution and short-term changes of the Krishna basin agroecosystems
and waterscape. Because of the inherent lack of suitable policies for regulating sur-
face water and groundwater use in the Krishna Basin, environmental threats are
likely, to be further sharpened and to dramatically affect the large population of the
fragile ecosystem of the lower basin.
Surface Water and Groundwater Irrigation: Impacts on the Aquifers

The aquifer system of the lower Krishna basin. The lower Krishna basin has a
multilayered aquifer system, and hydrological studies have shown that groundwater
levels are shallow as a result of the influence of the canal network (GoAP, 2003).
Seepage from unlined canals and return flows from irrigation are the main sources
of recharge for the fresh shallow aquifer (0-30 m) used for agricultural and drinking
purposes. The Krishna River is the main source of recharge for plains along the river
channel (van Doorm, 2001). Deeper aquifers are generally brackish to saline and
mainly recharged by slow seepage from upper levels and from the Krishna River
itself during the monsoonal period.
Long-term trends: When agriculture development causes groundwater degrada-

tion. As observed in the entire Krishna basin, farmers in the lower basin have
increasingly tapped the local aquifers for both agriculture and aquaculture. The
Minor Irrigation Census of 2001 and district statistical handbooks indicate that
19,000 wells were used in the lower Krishna basin in 2001 (e.g., twice more than in
1987). If coastal and deltaic regions are subject to seasonally varying salinity and
groundwater levels (Gowing et al., 2006), the long-term increase in groundwater
abstraction observed in the lower Krishna basin has caused a lasting fall of the water
table by 1 to 2 m during the last decade and to a progressive salinization of the
aquifers (GoAP, 2003).
The salinization of the lower Krishna basin aquifers is due to two different
processes. First, in the inland region where groundwater use is intensive, the shallow
freshwater aquifer has been dramatically depleted and fossil saline water, trapped
during the deltaic formation in deeper aquifers, has reached the upper horizons
(GoAP, 2003). Some wells have turned saline and cannot be used for irrigation any-
more. Second, in the coastal zone and in the tail-end region of the Krishna delta irri-
gation project, the decline in the water table led to seawater intrusion, which is likely
to leave a permanent imprint on groundwater quality. GoAP (2007a) for example
describes a landward intrusion of the saltwater–freshwater interface of the second
aquifer (30-60 m deep) by 10 to 20 kilometers inland during the last two decades.
Finally, highly loaded return flows from agriculture and aquaculture have also been
identified as a main cause of pollution of surface water and groundwater in the delta.
Agrochemical residues accumulate in the aquifers and nitrate pollution can be
observed in some pockets of the delta (GoAP, 2001b). These are major concerns in
a region where most of the population, notably in the coastal area, highly depend on
fresh groundwater lenses tapped by hand pumps for domestic purposes and by elec-
tric motors for agricultural activities (GoAP, 2003). This makes clear that water
needs of agriculture and aquaculture are conflicting with the objectives of environ-
mental preservation.
Short-term changes: Impacts of low irrigation canal flows. The long-term trend
of groundwater salinization has been further sharpened during the recent spell of
drought as lower flows in irrigation canals (flows averaged 4.8 km3/year during the
period 2001-2004 compared to a long-term average of 6.15 km3/year [1975-2000];
Venot, Sharma, & Rao, 2008) and in the Krishna River itself (see above) caused
lower seepages, lower recharge of the upper aquifer, and further landward saline
water intrusion. Lower and delayed canal flows compelled farmers to change their
land use and cropping techniques (GoAP, 2003): They left some areas fallow and
continued tapping groundwater to irrigate the remaining cropped areas while return
flows concomitantly decreased. In spite of such adaptive strategies, paddy yields
have been strongly affected by water scarcity and hence livelihoods (yields 70%
below average were commonly reported in the tail-end regions of the Krishna delta
irrigation project; Venot et al., 2008). Many freshwater ponds located in the south
and east of the lower Krishna basin and historically supplied through the Krishna
delta irrigation canals have also not been supplied all year long. This has negatively
affected fish production in the region, and low water availability jeopardizes the sus-
tainability of aquaculture (Venot et al., 2008). Finally, lower flows in the canals have
led to domestic water shortage in the coastal zone, where brackish groundwater can-
not be used for domestic purposes.
There is a clear need for measures of drought mitigation and regulation of
on-farm practices to lessen the environmental consequences of a dry period.
Maintaining a minimal flow in the irrigation canals of the Krishna delta could be a
first step. It is needed to sustain the local agriculture but it could also indirectly par-
ticipate in the preservation of the lower Krishna basin environment as it would also
freshen the local aquifers through seepages. Interestingly, as early as 1976, the first
Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal (in charge of apportioning water among the three
states that share the Krishna water: Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Karnataka)
mentioned the role of irrigation canal flows to limit salinization in the lower Krishna
basin and designed its allocation accordingly (Government of India/Krishna Water
Disputes Tribunal, 1976). This allocation could be a good basis for further refine-
ment of the Krishna delta allotment given the backdrop of increased cropping inten-
sity and groundwater abstraction.
Coastal Resources Use and Environmental Degradation

Relationships that communities nurture with their environment progressively
evolve with the identification of new economic opportunities. Rural dynamics and a
changing mode of access to natural resources in the lower Krishna basin had dra-
matic impacts on local ecosystems. The area of mangroves, for example, declined as
(a) they have long been used for multiple purposes (see MEA, 2005, for different
possible uses of mangroves) by a population of about 30,000 people increasingly
attracted by a profitable brackish aquaculture sector; (b) more recently, their land
status partially changed when exploitation licenses for agriculture and brackish
aquaculture were delivered by the local authorities (before 1997); and (c) their man-
agement, long devolved to the local panchayats has been entrusted to governmental
services such as the Departments of Forest and Fisheries.
Between the mid-1970s and the early 2000s, mangrove covers had decreased by
about 2,200 ha in the lower Krishna basin. In 2001, mangroves covered about 8,000
ha, mostly in the mouth of the Krishna River (Venot et al., 2008). Mangrove areas
are now protected and the creation of Coastal Regulation Zones, in 1991, is a first
step toward integrated coastal management to notably regulate the exploitation of
this fragile ecosystem. However, implementation difficulties remain and mangroves
are still under the threat of several interconnected processes: (a) overgrazing, (b)
overexploitation of timber products (GoAP, 2001b), (c) conversion to shrimp ponds
(the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations [2002] evaluated that
3% to 5% of all shrimp ponds in Andhra Pradesh had been dug in mangroves areas,
this being about 1,200 ha in the lower Krishna basin), (d) alteration of tidal flows in
and out of the mangroves and biota changes due to lower river flows and the forma-
tion of a sand bar in the mouth of the delta (Selvam, 2003), and (e) increasing pol-
lution due to agriculture and aquaculture return flows, etc.
Land Degradation
Salinity problems are common features of coastal areas and deltaic environments
(Gowing et al., 2006). But aquifer salinization and aquaculture development
observed during the last decade and a relative lack of drainage are likely to have
heightened the problem of soil salinization. The Andhra Pradesh Water Management
Project (APWAM, 2005) evaluated that strongly saline and alkaline soils covered
25,000 ha and an extra 45,000 ha had lower but significant salinity levels.
Decreasing irrigation canal flows and low rainfall further sharpen this problem:
Adequate supplies are needed for flushing and leaching salt-affected soils in the tail-
end areas of the canals but they are not available. This leads to further salinization.
Another source of land degradation is brackish aquaculture. First, soils are gen-
erally not adequately flushed and when done it is often with brackish groundwater:
They become highly saline and improper to other kinds of reclamation (GoAP,
2001b). Second, contamination of bacteria, fungi, and viruses can lead to large-scale
land degradation as observed during 1994-1996 (Brugere, 2006) even if shrimp
farming remains mainly extensive. Third, saline percolation from ponds contami-
nates neighboring fields, which become unsuitable for paddy cultivation.
Delineating different areas for aquaculture and agriculture could be a solution to
some of these problems (Gowing et al., 2006).
Direct Impacts of Lower River Flows: Salinization and Erosion

There is evidence of increasing salinity in the river channels. The saline–fresh-
water interface in river water is progressively moving inland as a result of lower
freshwater flows in the river (Saxena, Singh, Mondal, & Jain, 2003). This affects the
small plains located along the river. Finally, Smakhtin et al. (2007) show that there
is a tendency toward land losses to the sea as little water with lower sediment load
(because of sedimentation in the many reservoirs built in the Krishna basin) reaches
the ocean. Maintaining a given discharge to the ocean could allow limiting these
losses that have remained restricted to small areas in the mouth of the Krishna River
until now.
The Kolleru Lake: Acute Conflicts in an Endangered Wetland

The Kolleru Lake is a freshwater lake fed by several rivulets and is connected to
the Krishna and Godavari irrigation systems through several canals and drains sup-
plying water for drinking and agricultural purposes to the population of the lake area.
The wetland has undergone dramatic changes during the last three decades. Land
entitlements in the lake bed were granted to local farmers and fishermen as early as
1977-1978 and culture fisheries (fish and shrimp ponds) quickly replaced the tradi-
tional capture fisheries. As generally observed in the lower Krishna basin, the role of
large local entrepreneurs has been tremendous in explaining the success of aquacul-
ture development: They heavily invested in the sector by renting fishponds from
local farmers and fishermen who were holding land entitlements (Rama Rao et al.,
2006; in the late 1990s almost all ponds in the Kolleru region were leased out
[GoAP, 2001b]).
Aware of the dramatic environmental changes affecting the Kolleru Lake, the
Government of Andhra Pradesh took very strong symbolic decisions to protect the
region. In 1999, the wetland was declared a wildlife sanctuary under India’s Wild
Life (Protection) Act of 1972. Furthermore, in November 2002, the Kolleru Lake
was designated a wetland of international importance under the International
Ramsar Convention (GoAP, 2007b). The protected area covers 308 km2. Despite the
official recognition of the remarkable character of the Kolleru Lake ecosystem, envi-
ronmental degradation and lake encroachment continued in the early 2000s. In 2006,
aquaculture ponds covered between 10,300 (Nageswara Rao, Krishna, & Malini,
2004) and 12,200 ha (Anonymous, 2007) of the protected area whereas agriculture
covered an additional 5,000 to 6,000 ha. Other environmental problems include (a)
increasing pollution due to aquaculture and agriculture effluents, (b) lack of
drainage, (c) subsequent eutrophication of the lake, increasingly covered with water-
weed, (d) decrease in and contamination of the fish population of the lake, and
(v) increased siltation leading to floods (Anjaneyulu & Durga Prasad, 2003).
Protecting the lake ecosystem has long been presented as a government priority
(GoAP, 2001b). However, removing illegal fishponds from the protected area has
always been a highly sensitive question, opposed by a powerful lobby. Although the
Andhra Pradesh High Court of Justice passed an order to remove illegal fish tanks in
2001 (“Kolleru Lake, a Sanctuary,” 2001), the measure has been delayed several times.
Finally in February 2006, the Supreme Court of India passed an order to remove illegal
encroachments in the lake (“Panel Wants Kolleru Lake Cleared,” 2006). This decision
was strongly opposed by fishermen and farmers lobbies on the grounds that this move
was threatening their livelihoods. Land entitlements have however been cancelled and
it is estimated that about 19,500 ha of aquaculture ponds were demolished on June 15,
2006 (GoAP, 2007b). This required the involvement of police forces to maintain public
safety (“Operation Kolleru Resumes,” 2006). Some ponds still remain and the transfer
of the Conservator of Forests in charge of the protection of the Ramsar site under polit-
ical pressure highlights the political sensitivity of a measure affecting both large
investors and landless farmers pushed into precarious situations. Other measures to reju-
venate the lake are being taken or contemplated and the specialized organization
Wetlands International is entrusted with the writing of a multidisciplinary integrated
management plan for the restoration of the Kolleru Lake (Narsimhulu, personal com-
munication, May 7, 2007).
Possible Future Strategies and Mitigation Measures
Since India gained Independence, the Krishna basin has witnessed an increasing
development of its water resources with little regard to the limits of availability and sus-
tainability. This led to a decreasing discharge to the ocean pointing out to the progres-
sive closure of the Krishna basin: altered flow regimes led to downstream
environmental degradation. However, the high discharges to the ocean observed in
2005-2007 (29 km3/year, owing to good monsoonal rains) highlight that the Krishna
basin is in transition and that there is scope for limiting and reversing environmental
damage for the benefit of local livelihoods. Mitigation measures could take several
forms.
Implementing an Environmental Water Provision

Taking the South African case as a model (Tharme, 2003), this article calls for a
formal allocation of water to be set aside for the purpose of environmental preserva-
tion. This ‘environmental allocation’ is necessary as the highest costs of environ-
mental degradation are typically borne by people depending directly on ecosystem
services for their livelihoods and who are generally among the poorest in develop-
ing countries (Emerton & Bos, 2005; Pearce et al., 2006). This environmental
“reserve” needs to be embedded in a broader framework for long-term adaptive
water- allocation mechanisms to meet growing and competing water demands.
The current Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal put in place by the Government of
India and in charge of apportioning the Krishna water among the three riparian states
of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Maharashtra is expected to reach a decision
between 2008 and 2010 and it could be an appropriate platform to devise such envi-
ronmental allocation. However, at present, the tribunal mainly involves decision
makers and bureaucrats from the three states and needs to be made more responsive
to local communities’ demands through involving local users in the negotiatory

process of water apportionment for both social and environmental benefits (refer to
Iyer, 2003, and Janakarajan, 2007, for the prospects and problems related to involv-
ing farmers in the resolution of water-sharing conflicts).
The Tribunal award (based on Integrated Water Resources Management princi-
ples) should (a) be defined at the basin level, (b) be based on a comprehensive and
transparent understanding of the basin hydrology, (c) estimates long-term reliable
supplies in any part of the basin in light of actual and projected use, and (d) be
informed on the ecological consequences of altered flow regimes. Once a given
amount of water is protected for the sake of environmental preservation (this will
also allow sustaining the livelihoods of the poorest), the remainder could be appor-
tioned to human consumptive uses following the priorities set up in the National
Water Policy of India (MoWR, 2002).
The environmental provision could be defined as a two-tier allocation. First, a
given discharge in the irrigation canals of the Krishna delta to meet the agriculture
and domestic demand of the local population and also the environmental require-
ments of groundwater recharge and salt leaching from the soil. The award of the first
Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal (e.g., 5.1 km3/year) could be used as a first basis
for further refinement given the backdrop of increased cropping intensity and
groundwater abstraction. This requires further study on the extent and spatial distri-
bution of groundwater abstraction in the lower Krishna basin. Second, a fixed annual
discharge to the ocean, maintained by the Irrigation Department of Andhra Pradesh
(as proposed by the Government of Andhra Pradesh, 2001b) put under public
scrutiny, to limit seawater intrusion in the river branches and preserve the function-
ing of downstream ecosystems. Smakhtin and Anputhas (2006) evaluate that this
would require between 6.5 and 14.2 km3/year. Water commitment would then
become 94% to 98% of total water availability, showing that water resources are
fully committed under average conditions and that further water resources develop-
ment will be tantamount to sectoral and/or regional reappropriation of water. In
times of drought, intensive agricultural water uses in upstream semiarid regions of
the basin (paddy and sugarcane cultivation for example) are likely to be the first to
be curtailed with necessary mitigation procedures (see below).
Supply Augmentation Project: Transferring Water

Supply augmentation projects to increase water availability in the lower Krishna
basin through the transfer of water from the Godavari basin (Godavari–Krishna link
at Pollavaram; National Water Development Agency, 2007) are a partial response
and hold short-term promises to support agriculture, counterbalance the observed
decline in the discharge of the Krishna River, and limit environmental degradation.
They also illustrate the persistence of an engineering-based approach to water
resources development and do not bring long-term solutions to the pending problems
the region is facing. Finally, they raise social, political, economic, and ecological
issues, often overlooked (Venot et al., 2007), and are based on the concept of “sur-
plus water” that has been questioned by Smakhtin et al. (2007) in the case of the
Godavari basin.
Technical and Institutional Responses

Local rural dynamics are some of the main causes of environmental degradation
in the lower Krishna basin, and mitigation strategies include
• Technical interventions such as the reconfiguration of the soil surface and subsur-
face drainage systems (APWAM, 2005);
• Regulation of local practices: monitoring the use of fertilizers and pesticides
through agricultural extension services, regulating groundwater access, and limiting
the depth and number of wells in use through policies of electricity supply and pric-
ing and policies of access to credit; and
• The delineation of zones with different development and environmental objectives:
the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification of 1991 is a first step forward but its
implementation is hindered by the current institutional setup of natural resources
management.
Other generic interventions such as strengthening the institutional context, facilitat-

ing the coordination between departments, maintaining a database on wetlands, man-
groves, and soil and water salinization, and promoting the role of the resource users in
the decision-making process are commonly advocated (GoAP, 2001b; Gowing et al.,
2006). To avoid that any of these “environmentally oriented” interventions distress local
livelihoods, there is a need for providing attractive alternatives to the poorest commu-
nities: crop insurance schemes, attractive output markets for farmers tempted to diver-
sify (notably toward fruits and vegetables production and livestock systems), subsidies
to adopt microirrigation, and creation of adequate nonfarm livelihood opportunities
(notably in the agro-processing sector). Finally, ecosystem services (including freshwa-
ter and brackish water aquaculture) provide an important means of livelihood to the vast
resource-poor population but are presently poorly appreciated. One of the most promis-
ing ways of placing the preservation of ecosystems on the water agenda is through an
economic valuation of the services sustained by ecosystems (Emerton & Bos, 2005;
Pearce et al., 2006). This shall help in internalizing the objective of environmental
preservation in the decision-making process of water allocation currently dominated by
economic and political motives.
Conclusion
Rural development dynamics in the Krishna basin have led to rising overcommit-
ment of available water resources: signs of basin closure are apparent during dry peri-
ods and altered flow regimes have led to environmental damage in the lower Krishna
basin, which (a) bears the brunt of any intervention upstream and (b) witnessed
dynamics of natural resources use whose short-term financial gains conflict with the
objective of a sustainable development. Environmental degradation manifests itself
by increasing soil and groundwater salinity, aquifers and surface water pollution,
scarcity of freshwater resources, shrinkage of mangrove covers and desiccation of the
Kolleru Lake. Recognizing the environment as a water user in its own right and
implementing an environmental reserve are difficult but necessary measures for both
environmental sustainability and the livelihoods of the vast poor population.
Given current data availability, present understanding of the hydrology and ecol-
ogy of Indian river basins, and current commitment of decision makers toward the
objective of environmental preservation, only average allocations administratively
defined are possible. The Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal is expected to reach a
decision between 2008 and 2010 and could be an appropriate platform to devise such
environmental allocation if made more responsive to local communities’ demands.
These average allocations still leave problems of management during dry years. But
once a basinwide planning or reconnaissance-level assessment is generally recog-
nized as necessary and benefits from a strong commitment of the different users and
managers, environmental provisions could evolve to a more complex set of environ-
mental flow rules defined in a polycentric governance setup allowing participation
of all for an integrated management of natural resources, notably water, at different
levels from the local level (regulating practices), to the state level (with notably inte-
grated coastal management), and finally the basin level (integrated basin manage-
ment and water allocation procedures with the involvement of both the federal and
the state governments) (for more precision on the rules, concepts and methodologies
that could be considered see, Tharme, 2003). That water development in the Krishna
Basin has happened with little regard to the formal allocation mechanisms defined
in the mid-1970s also illustrates the need for a clear governance system with legally
empowered actors who could act to stop any project contradicting the award of the
Tribunal (Venot et al., 2007). Ecology being only the fourth priority in the National
Water Policy of India, the latter is unlikely to be effective in its present form for the
purpose of environmental preservation. What is needed now is a strong commitment
of the decision makers toward the aim of environmental preservation (Falkenmark
et al., 2007) and this will only be achieved if managers and decision makers are con-
vinced that providing environmental flows can produce environmental as well as
economic and social benefits. More research is needed to link altered flow regimes,
environmental degradation, economic valuation of ecosystem services and social
and economic marginalization.
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Jean-Philippe Venot is a PhD scholar with the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and the
Laboratoire Gecko at the University of Paris X-Nanterre, France. He is currently in the IWMI-Hyderabad
Office (India). His research involves issues of river basin management and the relationships between envi-
ronment and societies.
Bharat R. Sharma is a senior researcher with the International Water Management Institute (IWMI). He
is currently in the IWMI New Delhi office (India). His research involves issues of water management and
planning in India
K. V. G. K. Rao is currently an independent consultant in Indwa Techologies Pvt. Ltd. and has been work-
ing as an agricultural scientist for several Indian institutions over several decades.

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The Journal of Environment &

Krishna Basin Development: Interventions to Limit Downstream

The online version of this article can be found at:

Email Alerts: http://jed.sagepub.com/cgi/alerts

Keywords: water resources development; rural development; integrated natural

Human and Physical Setting of the Lower Krishna Basin

• The Kolleru Lake, which is a freshwater inland lake designated as a wetland of

Water Allocation in the Framework of Environmental Flows

Defining Environmental Water Provision in a Data-Scarce Context

Assessing Environmental Water Requirements in the Krishna Basin

Allocating water to meet different environmental objectives. Based on the work

EWR (% historical 62.5 35.7 18.3 8.4 3.5 1.5

Source: Adapted from Smakhtin and Anputhas (2006).

ecosystems. It is generally recognized that environmental flows should be defined

The Drivers of Environmental Degradation

Shifting Landscape and Waterscape in the Krishna Basin

Basinwide water accounting: A methodology for quantification. The water

RF + Tin = Dpl + P + Tout + Qout + ΔS (1)

Rural Dynamics in the Lower Krishna Basin

Aquaculture, strongly supported by the Government of Andhra Pradesh, was one of

Institutional Context of the Lower Krishna Basin

Rural Development and Environment: Conflicting

Surface Water and Groundwater Irrigation: Impacts on the Aquifers

Long-term trends: When agriculture development causes groundwater degrada-

Coastal Resources Use and Environmental Degradation

Direct Impacts of Lower River Flows: Salinization and Erosion

The Kolleru Lake: Acute Conflicts in an Endangered Wetland

Possible Future Strategies and Mitigation Measures

Implementing an Environmental Water Provision

to local communities’ demands through involving local users in the negotiatory

Supply Augmentation Project: Transferring Water

Technical and Institutional Responses

Other generic interventions such as strengthening the institutional context, facilitat-

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